Kate Lethbridge-Stewart
Kate Lethbridge-Stewart
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Kate Lethbridge-Stewart

Kate Lethbridge-Stewart, also known as Kate Stewart, is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. She was created by writer Marc Platt and first portrayed by Beverley Cressman in the independent direct-to-video spin-offs Downtime (1995) and Dæmos Rising (2004). The character was reintroduced in the revived series by Chris Chibnall in the 2012 episode "The Power of Three," portrayed by Jemma Redgrave, who has continued in the role since then.

Kate is the daughter of Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, a key figure from the classic series. Within the narrative, she leads the Unified Intelligence Taskforce (UNIT) as head of Scientific Research and later as commander-in-chief, helping defend Earth against alien threats. She has appeared alongside multiple incarnations of the Doctor, including the Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Doctors.

She is set to appear as a lead character in the upcoming spin-off series The War Between the Land and the Sea, scheduled for release in 2026.

Kate Lethbridge-Stewart first appears in the direct-to-video spin-off Downtime (1995), in which Kate is depicted as having grown up not knowing of her father Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart's work fighting extraterrestrial threats in UNIT and believing he had a more ordinary military job. Blaming his work for the disintegration of their family, she becomes estranged from him and lives on a narrowboat with her only son, Gordon. However, a shared experience fighting the Great Intelligence alongside the Brigadier and Sarah Jane Smith allows her to reconnect with her father and develop a closer relationship. Later, Kate battles a Dæmon alongside ex-UNIT operative Douglas Cavendish in the direct-to-video spin-off Dæmos Rising (2004).

Kate is introduced on television in the 2012 Doctor Who episode "The Power of Three", where she meets the Doctor for the first time in his eleventh incarnation. She is now the head of Scientific Research for UNIT, opting to lead the military organisation towards a more science-based approach, and has dropped Lethbridge from her surname as to not receive any special favours. She and the Doctor endure "the Year of the Slow Invasion", during which cubes are sent by the Shakri to observe the human race in advance of an impending attack, and manage to stop them. In "The Day of the Doctor" (2013), Kate and UNIT's scientific advisor Petronella Osgood encounter the Eleventh Doctor again alongside his earlier incarnations, the War Doctor and the Tenth Doctor. They confront shape-shifting Zygons in the Black Archive, UNIT's secret vault in the Tower of London, and negotiate a peace treaty allowing 20 million Zygons to settle on Earth disguised as humans.

Kate works alongside the Twelfth Doctor for the first time in "Death in Heaven" (2014). When Cybermen are released onto the streets by Missy, Kate and Osgood arrive with UNIT officers and take Missy and the Doctor into custody on the plane Boat One. However, Missy escapes when Cybermen attack Boat One, during which a part of the fuselage blows off and Kate is sucked out of the plane. She is saved and returned safely to the ground by her father, who was converted into a Cyberman. Later, Kate summons Clara Oswald to UNIT headquarters in "The Magician's Apprentice" (2015) when Missy freezes all planes on Earth, which turns out to be her way to get UNIT's attention to arrange a meeting with Clara. In "The Zygon Invasion" / "The Zygon Inversion" (2015), Kate goes to Truth or Consequences, New Mexico to investigate a splinter group of Zygons who start an uprising after rejecting the peace treaty made with humans. Surviving an attack by a Zygon rebel, she takes its place and reconvenes with the Doctor in the Black Archive. A standoff ensues there between her and the Zygon rebel leader Bonnie with two Osgood Boxes that could unmask or destroy every Zygon on the planet. Aided by the Doctor, the conflict ends with both sides re-affirming the peace treaty.

Kate re-appears in "Survivors of the Flux" (2021), which reveals that an alien by the name of the Grand Serpent infiltrated UNIT over several decades and facilitates its shutdown in 2017. When Kate threatens to expose him, she is forced to go on the run after a failed attempt on her life. During the 2021 Sontaran invasion of Earth in "The Vanquishers" (2021), Kate emerges to lead the human resistance and triumphs with the help of the Thirteenth Doctor. By 2022, Kate is able to re-establish UNIT. She takes the Master into custody in "The Power of the Doctor" (2022), but UNIT's headquarters are overrun by Cybermen and blown up. Kate attends a companion support group meeting and discusses recruiting them to UNIT.

Kate begins using her full surname Lethbridge-Stewart again and has become the commander-in-chief of UNIT by the time she meets the Fourteenth Doctor in "The Giggle" (2023). Together, they face and defeat the Toymaker, a battle which causes the Doctor to bi-generate into the Fifteenth Doctor. During an alternate timeline shown in "73 Yards" (2024), Ruby Sunday goes to Kate for help regarding a mysterious woman following her and causing all others who approach the woman to flee; in her attempt to capture the woman, Kate befalls the same fate and abandons Ruby. In "The Legend of Ruby Sunday" / "Empire of Death" (2024), the Fifteenth Doctor and Ruby come to UNIT for help regarding the mysteries of Ruby's mother and the recurring face of Susan Triad, whom they discover is actually the harbinger of the god of death, Sutekh. Sutekh destroys all life on Earth, killing everyone including Kate, but she is brought back to life after his defeat by the Doctor.

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